The 2016 National Urban League Conference, titled Save Our Cities: Education, Jobs & Justice, is being held in Baltimore, which we used as a key point in the conference identity. Baltimore is a city overflowing with personality, and that was an aspect that we wanted to infuse the identity with. Baltimore has a rich history and is known as a city of neighborhoods—two traits that bring it such personality.

With this in mind, the conference logo mixes typefaces and shapes. Some of the type is historic, and some is modern—much like the personality of Baltimore, the pieces of the identity mix together in fun and unexpected ways to create one voice. We wanted the conference identity to have a distinctly grassroots, energetic feel. The pieces all work together, but they can also be combined in so many different ways that the collateral always feels fresh.